Rani of Jhansi

Rani of Jhansi (19 November 1828-18 June 1858) was Maharani of Jhansi from 21 November 1853 to 10 March 1854 and from 4 June 1857 to 5 April 1858, succeeding Gangadhar Rao. She was one of the leading figures of the Sepoy Mutiny against the British.

Biography
Rani Lakshmibai was born in Varanasi, India to a noble family on 19 November 1828, and she married Maharaja Gangadhar Rao of Jhansi in 1842. Their only child died in infancy in 1851, and, when her husband died, he willed that Rani take his place as ruler. However, the British authorities disrespected the will, giving Rani an annual pension of 60,000 rupees and ordering her to leave the palace and fort. When the Sepoy Mutiny broke out in 1857, Rani sided with the rebels after much consideration, and, from August 1857 to January 1858, Jhansi was once again at peace. However, the British began to bombard Jhansi on 24 March, and Tatya Tope failed to relieve the British siege. Rani and her adoptive son Damodar Rao escaped the city when they leapt over the walls on horseback (they survived, while the horse died). On 17 June, the British caught up with Rani's sizable Indian rebel army near the Phool Bagh of Gwalior, and Rani dressed as a cavalry leader and led her army into battle. She was badly wounded, and she told a hermit to burn her body rather than let the British capture it. A total of 5,000 Indians (including all soldiers over the age of 16) were killed by the British at Phool Bagh.